Honghe Embroidery Since the late Qing Dynasty, the small aprons worn by rural women in Honghe Town, Xiuzhou District, Jiaxing City have been very eye-catching. Their embroidery is particularly exquisite, and the patterns are colorful. They are the most decorative accessories in the local water village women's clothing. The small apron is a small cloth apron used by rural women in Jiaxing to wrap around, clean and warm themselves. There is an embroidered flower belt about 35 cm long and 8 cm wide at each end. The flower belt is made with exquisite craftsmanship, with hand-embroidered figures and patterns, etc. It is simple and gorgeous, full of decorative interest and strong rural flavor. It is mainly used for women's daily dress and labor. Generally, unmarried girls in the local area have to embroider two pairs of apron flower belts to make two aprons, one for guests and the other for work. The embroidery of the small apron is relatively complicated. The first step is to cut the silk or cotton cloth into strips. The second step is to draw the pattern and make it into a fine ink line draft (sometimes the outline is also outlined with milk to keep the picture neat). The third step is to embroider carefully, absorbing the Suzhou embroidery techniques, and the embroidery piece is completed. There are two main types of embroidery patterns: one is opera characters, such as "Eighteen Farewells", "Phoenix Pavilion", "Meeting on the Tower", "Jinshan Temple", etc., which are generally used by young women; the other is auspicious patterns, such as "Eight Immortals in the Dark" and "Carp Jumping over the Dragon Gate", which are generally used by the elderly. It takes about a week to embroider a flower belt. The fourth step is to buckle the embroidery piece on the apron (a small apron requires a pair of flower belts). Honghe embroidery is influenced by Suzhou embroidery, with a delicate and exquisite style. It emphasizes the comprehensive use of needlework and embroidery. The short needles are fine and dense, the stitches are even, the thread is bright, and the contrast and unity are pursued. Especially when embroidering characters, in order to show the tender skin of the characters' faces, flat needles are often used, and the shapes are naive. Artistic re-creation is carried out on the basis of reflecting the original appearance of the drawings. The exquisite elegance is highlighted in a small space, reflecting the simple aesthetic taste of peasant women. While reflecting practical value, it also has high aesthetic value. The inheritor of Honghe embroidery, Mr. Zhu Wenbao (born in 1932), still preserves three complete apron embroidered belts. With the changes of the times, the development of society and the improvement of living standards, the old small waistcoats are no longer used, and Honghe embroidery has gradually withdrawn from the historical stage. In recent years, with the development of folk activities, some embroidery products have reappeared. Honghe embroidery has been included in the second batch of Jiaxing City's intangible cultural heritage list. Information source: Jiaxing Library (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.) Information source: Jiaxing Library (No pictures yet, welcome to provide.)